I came across...

[Christiern]

Look at that hand...I think she turned out to be a drag, so to speak.

[Harold_Z]

Avakian: "Although the sidemen were not terrific" etc.

I'm just old enough to remember how the general vibe with jazz critics was that the All Stars weren't very good and Pops played the same solos and it was a set routine etc etc.

Now, as then, I listen to the record (and I was fortunate enough to see Pops live a few times with Trummy and Barney) and I think what were the critics missing. Trummy and Barney swing like mad, Arvell Shaw and Barrett Deems are totally locked and the proof is in the pudding...The WC Handy and the Fats Columbias are among the high spots of an already high caliber career. Certainly some of my very favorite Pops.

Producing is interesting. I can see where a good producer is so plugged in to a performance that he hears every flaw. BUT to hear flaws enough to make you state the that people like Trummy Young are "not terrifice" .............??

[AllenLowe]

whenever I look at one of Glaser's letters I can't help thinking of how Armstrong told Gil Evans he was interested in making a recording; he told Evans to go see Glaser, who kicked him out of the office because he'd never heard of him -

[Ricko]

I have all that exists from the "Satch Plays Fats" session tapes, about 3 1/2 hours of material. I think the All Stars sound great and Pops is magnificent on take after take...BUT Barney Bigard is terrible. Awful. Bored out of his mind and going through the motions. Deems practically calls attention to it with his drumming on the master takes. Listen to when Bigard trades with Trummy on something like "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now." As issued, Deems gives Trummy a heavy backbeat and slashes his cymbals but when Bigard's up, Deems plays like he's trying not to wake the neighbors. Well, it wasn't always like that. On the first takes, Bigard went first and Deems drove them both equally. But Bigard is so bored, it rubs off on Trummy, who also plays like he's falling asleep. However, after a few takes, everything changed, though unfortunately, the tape wasn't running to catch any studio conversations. Neverthess, around take five, Trummy began leading off and Deems began switching his backing, though Barney still played on fumes, even squeaking like an amateur on one take. It was like that on all nine tunes.

I've gotten to know Avakian quite well in preparing for my book and he still has some regrets about the album. First, Armstrong was in the middle of yet another killer stretch of one-nighters and only had time to do nine tunes, many of which he obviously already knew by heart. Avakian would have loved one more session and originally, he wanted to do material like "Willow Tree," "I Hate to Leave You Now" and a few others, but they just didn't have the time. Still, he's quite proud of the album, especially "Blue Turning Grey" and "Black and Blue." But trust me, after listening to the session tapes, Avakian did a magical job in making Barney seem coherent. If I spent two straight weeks doing editing (the final session was May 3 and Avakian wrote to Glaser on May 17 saying it's done), I might have complained about the band being "not tremendous, too."

By the way, Avakian wrote a long essay for reissue of "Satch Play Fats" in 2000. It's really great but Sony didn't use it for some reason and now Avakian's on the outs with them. Sony used those four "edited" session takes on the disc, but trust me, there's a lot more. If Sony had any respect for Armstrong, they'd be doing boxes with his mid-50s material like they have done for Miles all these years. Maybe one day...

Keep the letters coming, Chris!

Ricky Riccardi

dippermouth.blogspot.com

[AllenLowe]

hey Chris, I may be alone here, but I'd like to see more of Lil on that band and Keppard -

[Christiern]

Sure, Allen, I'll take a request....but first,here's a letter I wrote to the NY Amsterdam News, which they printed in their August 14, 1976 issue. After some 32 years, my outrage lingers on...

They printed my letter in full, but this remains an embarrassing publication.

Edited December 8, 2008 by Christiern

[Christiern]

The only thing I came across today was this:

My new iMac!

As you can imagine, it is requiring (and getting) all my attention.

[Chuck Nessa]

Looks just like mine.

[Christiern]

They are great computers and that 24" screen is very handy for my work, which often requires that I have two pages up, side by side. My old Mac is still working fine,but I have been using it for 5 or 6 years, so it was time.

Are you pleased with your iMac?

[kh1958]

That is a beauty!

[Chuck Nessa]

They are great computers and that 24" screen is very handy for my work, which often requires that I have two pages up, side by side. My old Mac is still working fine,but I have been using it for 5 or 6 years, so it was time.

Are you pleased with your iMac?

Mine is a 20" and I love it.

[DukeCity]

They are great computers and that 24" screen is very handy for my work, which often requires that I have two pages up, side by side. My old Mac is still working fine,but I have been using it for 5 or 6 years, so it was time.

Are you pleased with your iMac?

Mine is a 20" and I love it.

Not that size matters....or so I keep telling myself...

[marcello]

Oscar Pettiford Orch at Birdland

[jostber]

Oscar Pettiford Orch at Birdland

Three basses and a harpist? Pretty cool.

[Chuck Nessa]

My old friend JR Monterose on tenor. He told me a couple of stories about working with OP.

[Christiern]

Thanks, Marcello, I'll do a print-out for Oscar junior.

[marcello]

That's two bassists and Oscar doubles on cello.

I'm guessing Osie Johnson on drums and Bill Crow on bass.

I can see Art Farmer too.

Never saw this one before.

Edit:

I found this, but there is a Birdland broadcast in 1956:

The Oscar Pettiford Orchestra : Ray Copeland, Art Farmer (-2); Kenny Dorham, tp (-1); Al Grey, tb; Julius Watkins, David Amram, Fr-hrn; Jerome Richardson, fl, Ts; Gigi Gryce, as; arr; Benny Golson, ts, arr; Sahib Shihab, bs; Dick Katz, p; Oscar Pettiford, b, cello; Whitey Mitchell, b; Gus Johnson, d; Betty Glamann, harp.

New York, August 23, 1957

Edit #2:

"The photo was made by Bill Spilka. It does of course not show the personnel of 570526, but one of Oscar's Birdland bands. Mitsuo Johfu identified Art Farmer tp, Jimmy Cleveland tb, Whitey Mitchell b, Osie Johnson d. In addition to that I believe I recognize Jerome Richardson and J. R. Monterose ts, Idrees Sulieman tp, Dick Katz p, Betty Glamann harp. Here is another photo - backstage. - In his book "Vibrations" David Amram recalls the last tour of this unique band."

OP link

Edited November 27, 2008 by marcello

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

can we hear this oscar pettiford orch on recordings/airchecks? i never knew this group existed....visually, looks like very good music!!!! thanks for posting

[BillF]

can we hear this oscar pettiford orch on recordings/airchecks? i never knew this group existed....visually, looks like very good music!!!! thanks for posting

Two of their albums are combined on the Impulse CD, Oscar Pettiford Orchestra, Deep Passion.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Memo to Goddard Lieberson:

Well, I'm glad George didn't get his way. "High society" was a lovely film and probably my first introduction to Armstrong.

MG

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Chris - is this discussion related to the "Satch plays Fats" LP?

MG

[Harold_Z]

The first bunch of tunes on the Decca list look sort of look like the track list for the "Live at Symphony Hall" lps which have a recording date in 1947. Maybe the original releases were on 78 - hence the part one and part two..

[Dan Gould]

Well I'm on pins and needles - what was the outcome? What did Gabler allow to be recorded????

[kh1958]

When I read this passage in the latest issue of the IAJRC Journal, talking about an exhibition of Timme Rosenkrantz photos, I had the sneaking suspicion that there was more to the story:

"Duncan [scheidt] acquired the Rosenkrantz treasures through a working partnership with Frank Driggs. While the latter was compiling swing-jazz re-issues at Columbia, he was naturally in a position to borrow artists' photos, from which Duncan made negatives and prints. The images displayed were collateral for a loan from Frank to Timme. Duncan made his slides from the first generation prints made from Timme's negatives...."

[Christiern]

Interesting, but that collateral story is Driggs bullshit. He simply stole whatever he could get a hold of at Columbia, the Schomburg, Time-Life and, very likely other companies and/or institutions whose files he had access to. Not to mention people, like me. Thanks for that info.